Sneak Peek: Aziz Ansari

The Modern Romantic of Comedy brings his shtick to the Hult Thursday

Aziz Ansari is a comedian with the zeitgeist nipping at his heels. Having found fame and a devoted following first with MTV’s comedy sketch show Human Giant,  and then playing the loveable trend-chaser Tom Haverford on Parks and Recreation, followed by rapid-fire releases of his comedy specials, Ansari is now tackling contemporary courtship, literally — like in a book. Romance and relationships in a tech-drunk world are at the heart of his upcoming book, Modern Romance, and tour of the same name, which comes to Eugene this Thursday, March 27. Continue reading 

Double Trouble

Tiny Tavern is putting its funny where its mouth is. The revamped Whiteaker bar hosts frequent comedy open mics with Mac Chase at the helm, and now local comedian Isaac Paris has booked “Comics in Glasses: Entertaining the Masses,” featuring the comic prowess of Torontonian David Heti, an “offbeat genius” a la Woody Allen (with the mug of a blond Adrian Brody), and “nerdcore folk duo” The Doubleclicks, a Portland sister act that sings about Pride and Prejudice heartthrob Mr. Continue reading 

Thank Dog for Mike Birbiglia

Mike Birbiglia

Birbiglia became the poster boy for REM (rapid eye movement) behavior disorder and self-deprecating laughs after cataloging his slumbering escapades (like jumping through a second-story window) in Sleepwalk With Me. Now, Birbiglia is on a 100-city tour — his biggest yet — for the new comedy special Thank God for Jokes; he’s still making the everyday hilarious, e.g., kissing is weird when you really think about it. EW caught up with the comedian on the road.   What’s on your mind today? Continue reading 

Undead WYMPROV!

“The four of us are kind of like sisters,” Vicki Silvers tells me over coffee pre-snowstorm at Noisette Pastry Kitchen, with her other “sister” Debbie Martin in tow. She’s speaking of the four women who make up WYMPROV!, a pioneering comedy improv group whose legacy in Eugene dates back more than two decades to its “Debut and Farewell” show at Agate Hall. Martin nods, adding that the foursome is supportive of each other on stage and off, getting together for frequent dinners and continuing “to get together and play.” Continue reading 

See Jane Make You Laugh

Northwest Women’s Comedy Fest hits the Wildish with new talent

There’s nothing more attractive than a funny woman (or rather, a funny person). Forget what the world of advertising tries to tell us; true beauty doesn’t rest with spherical breasts south of a perfectly placed Monroe mole (or washboard abs south of a cleft chin). It lies with a person who can master perfect timing or who can observe the subtle hilarity in everyday life and discuss it on stage with only a microphone. Continue reading 

Turn On, Tune In, Laugh Out Loud

The Brickwall Comedy Show brings full-time comedy to Eugene’s airwaves

Local comedian Chris Warren told a joke that almost put him in jail. While doing standup in Spokane, Wash., in 2003, Warren made a rough joke about Hillary Clinton, and it caught the attention of the Secret Service, who sent two members to speak with Warren. “I was public enemy number one for telling a joke,” he says. “It was the good cop/bad cop scenario. They told me to never tell the joke again, but then they asked me to tell the joke. I told them and they started cracking up!” Continue reading 

Eugene meet Eugene, Again

Stand-up Comedian Eugene Mirman chats with EW about Bob’s Burgers, Russia and a remake of Splash

You know him as the voice of Gene on Bob’s Burgers and as a motley crew of characters on Adult Swim, but Comedian Eugene Mirman is perhaps most revered for his baritone stand-up: a slew of silliness, irreverence and observation. His latest Comedy Central special, Eugene Mirman: An Evening in a Fake Underground Laboratory, was given an A- by the A.V. Club, which Mirman says is “wonderfully reasonable.”   Have you ever been to a town that shares your name? Continue reading 

Morgan Spurlock’s Shadow

Eugene’s honorary stoner, comedian Doug Benson, returns to our green valley

April 21 may as well be the new 4/20, as far as Eugene and comedian Doug Benson are concerned. The seminal stoner and star of Super High Me returns to WOW Hall for his 3rd annual celebration of giggling and giggle weed, hot off releasing his on-the-road documentary The Greatest Movie Ever Rolled — to continue in the vein of pot variations on a Morgan Spurlock theme — on Chill.com. Also the host of the Doug Loves Movies podcast, Benson sounds off on his favorite and most despised films of 2013, smoking with the stars and legalizing marijuana. Continue reading